For centuries swords were the weapon of choice for most warriors. Every culture that worked with metal produced swords. Over time many different versions of this common weapon emerged. From the Roman Gladius to the Scottish Claymore, and the Japanese Katana to the Moroccan Nimcha.
Swords can be classified in various ways; by region, by hilt type, by blade type, or by use and fighting style. When it comes to blade type, one common distinction was whether the weapon had a single or double-edged blade. Double-edged blades offered several advantages. They increased the number of cutting options available in a fight. They caused more damage when stabbing one's opponent. If one blade got damaged during battle, it was simply a matter of spinning the sword in one's hand to access the other functional blade.
There were however potential downsides to having a double-edged sword. Firstly, they took longer to make and maintain. Secondly, adding an additional edge could compromise the overall strength of the blade. Finally, a second edge limited some blade profile options that could be used to optimise the sharpness and cutting ability. (It also made it easier to cut yourself if you weren't careful!)
A double-edged sword has its advantages and its disadvantages. This is why it has become a commonly used metaphor for anything that has these same characteristics.
THE COMPARISON CONTINUUM
Comparison often gets a bad rap. It is often associated with many negative outcomes. And for good reason. For example, one study found that the self-esteem rates of frequent social media users who were comparing their lives against the highlight reels of others in their feeds were significantly lower than infrequent users.
And yet there are many healthy ways to use comparison to your advantage and drive towards success. As such, comparison is a double-edged sword. You can look at comparison and its effects as being on a continuum.
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At one end of the continuum, constantly comparing ourselves can lead to jealousy, dissatisfaction and constantly striving for more. When you look at others and compare what they have that you don't - whether that be material possessions, roles, or skills and qualities - it often sparks negative emotions. These emotions are ultimately expressions of fear - fear that we are missing out, fear that we aren't good enough, fear that we won't be accepted and will be rejected. All of this is a distraction from our purpose (in both life and work) and prevents us from progressing. It is effects like these that cause people to make statements akin to those of Iyanla Vanzant who says, "Comparison is an act of violence against the self," and Theodore Roosevelt who said, "Comparison is the thief of joy."
At the other end of the spectrum, comparison can be a very healthy and useful practice. Looking at others and acknowledging who they are, where they are, and what they did/do, and comparing yourself against them can be both inspiring and informative. Comparing ourselves to role models - positive (those you want to imitate) and negative (those whose behaviour you want to avoid) - can provide motivation to develop certain qualities and engage in a specific behaviour. By examining the lives of successful individuals, comparing where they are and what they did to get there to ourselves, where we are, and what we are currently doing, you may be inspired to emulate them.
The comparison also provides perspective. You may think you are awesome at something, however, it's only by comparing yourself to others that you get an objective measurement of how good you really are. Who you compare yourself to is important - it sets your frame of reference. Compared to the vast majority of people, I'm an excellent public speaker and facilitator. However, when I walk into a chapter meeting for Professional Speakers Australia, I often feel like a novice. I realise there is so much for me to learn and so far for me to go on my speaking journey. I find this inspiring.
There is also situational comparison. Often you will find you appreciate good situations and even plain normal scenarios so much more when you compare them to really difficult situations. You will also find difficult scenarios less challenging when compared to scenarios that are even more difficult. This was a particularly effective strategy we used to use in the military.
When we were enduring something difficult - such as being cold and wet at 3 a.m. on exercise - we would often play a game of "It could be worse." One of us would say, "It could be worse. We could be… [insert some outlandishly bad situation]." It always made us laugh and feel better. It is this type of comparison that echoes through Thomas Shadwell's writing when he pens, "No man is happy but by comparison."
So there is much about comparison that is useful for leaders. It is a handy tool for you to have in your leadership toolkit. Healthy comparison not only helps you personally to improve your performance, it also applies at a team level. You can use comparison to inspire and motivate teams as much as yourself.
THE DANGER
As with anything in life and leadership, there can be too much of a good thing. Whenever you over-rely on a strength, it becomes a derailer. Whenever you over-rely on a single leadership approach, it becomes an ineffective strategy. Whenever you over-rely on a particular tool, it can cause unintended and harmful consequences.
Comparison is no different. When you use comparison too often and too intensely, the focus of your comparison shifts and you end up an unhealthy comparison. Rather than using comparison to identify what you could do to become more like others, your focus shifts to being on the distance and the difference between yourself and others. This shift of focus highlights what you don't have, rather what you do have that you can use to continue progress and growth.
With this in mind, we might want to adjust the continuum to reflect a healthy middle range, with harmful extremes.
THE SOLUTION
There is, therefore, a balance that is required whenever comparison is used. The hallmark of unhealthy comparison is constant comparison. To gain the benefits of healthy comparison, you want to use it but use it sparingly, with purpose and intention.
The principle here is to periodically use comparison to identify the actions you need to take to grow, progress, and increase performance. Once you have identified these actions and developed a plan, stop comparing. Run your own race and focus on what you need to do. After a period of time, stop and review your performance. Compare your progress to the journey of others if relevant. Look to others for new inspiration and adjust your plan. Then, once again, stop comparing and focus on executing your own plan.
The balance required with comparison means its use falls into what Jocko Willink and Leif Babin call a dichotomy of leadership. Introducing the concept in their book Extreme Ownership, they write:
Every leader must walk a fine line… Leadership requires finding the equilibrium of many seemingly contradictory qualities, between one extreme and another. The simple recognition of this is one of the most powerful tools a leader has. With this in mind, a leader can more easily balance the opposing forces and lead with maximum effectiveness.
When you are mindful of both extremes of comparison, you can be intentional about balancing its use to maximise your own influence.
Comparison can be helpful, but it is easy for it to become harmful. When it came to the use of the double-edged sword on the battlefield, victory was determined by the skill of the swordsman rather than his choice of weapon. It is not much different in today's boardroom. Whether comparison as a tool is helpful or harmful is determined by you the leader and how you use it, rather than whether you used it at all.
